Why Google Buzz Is a Bust—Especially for Black Folks
The ubiquity of Google Buzz can be a dangerous thing for buppies straddling W.E.B. DuBois’ world of dual identities. Which is to say, you might want to think twice before you post your Lil’ Kim karaoke pics.
If you’ve logged onto your Gmail account lately, you’ve probably been invited to take a look at Buzz, Google’s first foray into the overcrowded world of social networking. After declining the initial promotional ad, I eventually gave in and clicked on the colorful Buzz icon innocuously positioned on my menu bar. After all, I’ve never met a Google application I didn’t like. (FYI: For those still using flash drives to tote around your masterpiece in progress—Try Google Docs.) But after watching the informational video, setting up my profile and creating a bit of online buzz, I have two words of advice: Don’t bother.
When I tried to explain to my friend what Google Buzz is, she said, “It sounds like Facebook and Twitter got married and birthed a baby through your e-mail account.” Um, pretty much. Buzz, like Facebook, allows you to post status updates, photos and more to your little section of cyberspace. And like Twitter, your friends are able to choose whether they’d like to “follow” you. But unlike its parents, baby Buzz allows you to leave your virtual mark without having to visit a separate Web site. Now, even those who never would have been interested in tracking your every move can do just that. All they have to do is make one extra click during a routine browse of their regular e-mail and—voila—you’re now on their “watch list.”
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